Well, it definitely felt like fall was in the air today...brrr! Now that the weather is turning colder, please be sure that your child has appropriate outerwear. We will be going outside for recess everyday, unless it is raining. They need to be dressed warm enough to be outside for 30 minutes at a time. It’s also a good idea to label ALL outwear – gloves, hats, scarves, coats, boots – with their names. It would amaze you how many items end up unclaimed in the lost and found!
Important Dates
International Walk to School Day ~ Wednesday, October 9th - Encourage your child to walk to school on Wednesday in celebration of International Walk to School Day! Our staff will be at a number of pick-up points throughout the neighborhoods, looking forward to walking to school with your children :) See the Olive Blog for pick-up points, and join us for the walk!
Re-enactment ~ Friday, October 11th - Permission slips came home this week. If you have not returned it yet, please sign and return as soon as possible. The Re-enactment is an interactive demonstration of life during colonial times set up in our field. It is conveniently scheduled near the beginning of our Revolutionary War unit, and serves as an excellent introduction to the unit. Students will have the opportunity to interact with pioneers living on the frontier during this time period to gain a unique perspective of what life was like during the Revolutionary War. Always a favorite for the 5th graders!
Columbus Day (No School) ~ Monday, October 14th
SIP Day (No School) ~ Tuesday, October 15th
Science Behind Drugs ~ Thursday, October 24th - Permission slips came home for all of the Robert Crown presentations for 5th graders on Friday. Please sign and return as soon as possible. This is the first of 4 presentations the 5th graders will participate in with Robert Crown. Science Behind Drugs is a program that presents the physiological dangers drug use can have on the body. They will also participate in the Linda/Michael Program which presents the physical changes puberty brings; and the Life Begins program which presents conception to birth. If you have any questions about any of these programs, please do not hesistate to contact me.
Open House ~ Thursday, October 24th at 6:30pm - please plan to enjoy of for an evening at our annual Open House! Students have fun showing their parents around the classroom and building, and it's a great chance for a chat :)
Team Building with the Principals
How lucky our fifth graders are to have such involved and dedicated principals! Our 5th Grade students were treated to a special team building activity with Mrs. Fitzpatrick and Mrs. Perri on Friday morning. Fifth grade classes had to utilize patience, teamwork, and clear communication to "cross the river" on "stepping stones," all the while avoiding the "curmudgeons" (our principals) who made the challenge even more daunting. See the Olive Blog for pictures and more information :) What a great time they had!!
Math
My math class finished up unit 2 this week, and will begin their review tomorrow. The Unit 2 Assessment is scheduled for Tuesday, 10/8. They should be studying for their assessment tomorrow night. As always, I offer study session during lunch/recess for students on the day of the review. Students will be sent home with copies of their Review Quiz with answers tomorrow - please be sure they look over this quiz, as it is a good indicator as to how they will perform on the assessment. They will also assigned a Review packet that should be reviewed tomorrow night.
Science
Students took their first science test this week on lessons 1-6 in the Human Body, and we moved on to learn about the respiratory and circulatory system. Ask your child how they find their heart rate, and what they noticed about their heart rate as their physical activities changed! They should also be able to tell you the reasons why. All students also had the opportunity to experience what it is like to try to breathe with restricted airways, as a person with asthma struggles. Ask them how they felt during this experiment!
Reading
We wrapped up Unit 1 in Treasures this week learning the strategy of cause and effect. This was a much easier strategy for the students to master, providing some relief to the increased rigor in our reading program. Next week, we will take a break from our Treasures program since it is week 6, and turn our attention to dramas. They will learn a little about the structure and history of dramas, and then get to participate in a character building play - should be a fun week!
Writing
In writing this week, we discussed how to "show, not tell" in our writing. I did a little dramatic acting :) and asked the students to describe my actions, facial expression, and words in their writing rather than tell me the emotion. While I cried my eyes out in pain, your children giggled uncontrollable...guess I've got to work on my acting. But the lesson was effective, nonetheless, as they were very descriptive in their showing details of my intense emotion. I was proud of them!
As always, please feel free to contact me with any questions or concerns. Have a fantastic weekend ~
“Whatever they grow up to be, they are still our children, and the one most important of all the things we can give to them is unconditional love. Not a love that depends on anything at all except that they are our children.” ~ Rosaleen Dickson
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